A Dangerous Impasse: Rwandan Refugees in Uganda Left with Limited Options

On 28 June 2010, the International Refugee Rights Initiative and the
Refugee Law Project launched a new report, "A Dangerous Impasse: Rwandan
Refugees in Uganda". The paper examines why refugees living in Uganda's
Nakivale settlement are refusing to return to Rwanda despite
considerable push factors. Based on 102 interviews with Rwandan
refugees, UN and government officials, the findings make it clear that
there are legitimate reasons for the refugees' stance. To the extent
that refugee groups can act as a barometer of the situation at home, the
findings are a serious indictment of the current Rwandan government.
Refugees view the government as repressive, and dissent in many aspects
of life is not tolerated. Those who question the regime are subjected to
human rights violations that include discrimination in employment,
imprisonment and forced disappearance. As a result, refugees are not
only reluctant to return home, they are afraid.

Specifically, the horrific events of the 1994 genocide are being used by
the government of Rwanda as a smokescreen for political repression,
particularly through the association of Hutu identity with the genocide.
Real or perceived abuses of justice – particularly in relationship to
grassroots gacaca courts – are continuing to feed ethnic divisions,
compromising people's ability to live without fear and to reclaim or
retain their land and other property. Far from burying the ethnic
hatchet, the findings suggest that human rights abuses are taking place
under the government of Rwanda's watch in the name of ethnic difference.
Rather than addressing this root cause of violence, therefore, current
attitudes and approaches promoted by the government and epitomised in
the collective assumption of guilt attributed to Hutus, are only
exacerbating the situation.

The findings also show that although repression is seen in ethnicised
terms, the real issue is the fact that there is little space for any
political opposition within Rwanda regardless of ethnicity. As a result,
while the genocide and its immediate aftermath might have been the
original cause of flight for many, ongoing political repression in
Rwanda is not only preventing refugees from returning, but is generating
new refugees. In fact, almost a quarter of all those interviewed had
arrived in Uganda since 2001. This version of the current realities of
life in Rwanda, as seen through the eyes of a group of refugees who have
suffered acutely as a result, suggests a different image from the one
the government has presented to the outside world, and indicates that
extreme caution needs to be taken with respect to the promotion of
voluntary repatriation.

The official policy response has been to deny Rwandan refugees access to
land and impose deadlines for return. This policy lacks recognition of
the genuine protection concerns that many Rwandan refugees express and
is jeopardising their safety. As a result, unwilling to return to
Rwanda, tens of thousands of refugees continue to wait in suspense,
either to be forcibly repatriated or to disappear and pretend to be
Ugandan or Congolese. They are not only being denied effective national
protection, but also most of the rights attached to refugee status.
Until the structures and policies that dictate the lives of refugees on
both sides of the border accommodate these political realities, their
lives will remain profoundly vulnerable.

In light of these findings, the paper makes a number of recommendations
to the governments of Uganda and Rwanda, and to UNHCR in order to
improve protection for this group of refugees. In particular, it states
that the Ugandan government must scrupulously uphold its international
and national legal obligations with regard to the protection of
refugees. Statements by government officials at all levels must affirm
the government of Uganda’s commitment to providing ongoing protection
and to respect the voluntary nature of repatriation.

These measures, while critical to the current protection of the
refugees, must be accompanied by concerted efforts to address root
causes of flight and ongoing displacement. In particular, there needs to
be a far more honest appraisal of what took place during and after the
genocide. Until this happens, the potential for ethnically-aligned
violence to be reignited will remain, Rwanda may once again erupt into
violence, and refugees will continue to fear return. Moreover, the
knock-on effect of the genocide will continue to be felt throughout the
region.

The full paper is available at
http://www.refugee-rights.org/Assets/PDFs/10_06_28_DangerousImpasse.pdf

Please send replies to:
  * Dismas Nkunda, Co-Director, International Refugee Rights Initiative,
  * dismas.nkunda@refugee-rights.org, +256 782310404

  * Moses Chrispus Okello, Senior Research Advisor, Refugee Law Project,
  * chrispusmoses.okello_at_gmail.com, +256 752986931